


Heavenly, Earthly, One of Countless

by spiralmaiden



Category: Free!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Ensemble Cast, Eventual Romance, Gods, M/M, Magical Realism, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-15
Updated: 2016-06-20
Packaged: 2018-05-20 17:45:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,398
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6019320
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spiralmaiden/pseuds/spiralmaiden
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After Haru's parents come home at the end of summer, he wakes the next morning to find himself on the path he was apparently always meant to be on: becoming the local god.</p><p>An alternate, supernatural take on the events following the end of Eternal Summer.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue - Secret

**Author's Note:**

> Inspirations for this fic:
> 
> -Ghibli films, especially Spirited Away and Ponyo  
> -Kamichu!  
> -Kannagi  
> -xxxHolic  
> -my own imaginings about supernatural explanations for things in the series overall
> 
> Basically, I'm nudging Free! a step to the right into magical realism.
> 
> Enjoy!

“Mama, Haru-chan’s kind of weird,” Makoto said once, on the edge of his earliest memories of childhood.

“Is that so?” said his mother to her newspaper.

“Yeah. When we were playing on the beach today, he stayed in the water the whole time. He really likes water. More than playing, maybe.”

“Well, that's probably where he feels most natural, after all,” she replied absently, again to the print in front of her.

“Why?”

At that, she looked up, as though finally realizing that Makoto was speaking to her the whole time. She gazed at him thoughtfully and set down the paper, motioning for him to come closer. He came within reach, and she picked him up and set him on her lap before she spoke again.

“Makoto, can you keep a secret?” He nodded, his eyes wide with the mystery of her request, and she continued: “Haruka might seem weird, but that’s because he was born different from you. We're an ordinary family; you're an ordinary boy, but as for Haruka, he's extraordinary.”

“ ‘Extraordinary,’ ” said Makoto, trying out this new word.

His mother nodded. "That means he's special."

Makoto's eyebrows turned up in wonder. Haru, his best friend, was someone _special_. He wasn't sure what that had to do with spending a lot of time in the water, but it was still amazing. "That's great!"

"Isn't it?" His mother smiled and ran her hand through his hair. "But Makoto, there are times when the things that make someone special will also make them lonely. I’m so happy that you're friends with Haruka because as long as you’re there, he won’t ever be alone. Look after him, okay?”

“Yeah! I will, Mama,” said Makoto.

His mother ruffled his hair again. “Good.”

Makoto ate his dinner especially quietly that night as he thought a lot about what he had been told. He was still thinking later when he stepped outside to help his mother take the garbage over to the pick-up spot for the next morning. He happened to glance back up the long flight of stairs above his home and spotted Haru sitting under the torii gate of the shrine at the top of the hill. He was gazing out at the ocean, and one of the neighborhood cats nudged at his knee. Makoto almost called out to him, his mind filled with his mother’s words, but he saw something in that moment that made him pause.

He didn’t understand what that something was at the time, but the feel of it was tremendous enough to shake his whole, small frame. It was the opposite of his fear of the depths of the water. As the moonlight shined down on Haru, Makoto grasped the meaning that the Haru he saw in that moment was what his mother called him: extraordinary. He dreamed about that image of Haru over and over again that night.

After several days of careful consideration, Makoto decided to ask Haru to join the swim club. If that was where, as his mother said, Haru felt most natural and was at his most extraordinary, then Makoto would swim with him. Even if it meant facing the frightening depths of the water, as long as Haru was there, he could bear it. He was glad he asked despite Haru’s initial scorn, because it was there they met others who saw what Makoto saw in Haru and he rejoiced when it made them want to gather around him.

And then, one December day, whatever it was that made Haru extraordinary simply disappeared. When Makoto caught sight of Haru’s back under the moonlight as he made his way up the stairs, he looked … ordinary. That was when, at the end of that school year, Haru quit swimming.

Makoto shut his secret away in his heart, and never said a word about it to Haru himself. Whether he could see Haru’s extraordinariness or not, he continued to look after him through everything, even up to the end of their last summer of high school.

However, it hadn’t occurred to him that meant there would still be days he would be waiting on the porch in the morning as Haru didn't answer the door.

"Again? You're graduating in spring, you know," he said, even though the subject of his annoyance couldn't hear. Just for that, he was definitely going to call him Haru-chan this morning.

Nearby, more activity than usual was going on at the shrine, but Makoto barely noticed as he made his way to the entrance he knew would be unlocked. He slid open the door and carefully stepped out of his shoes before going inside. It was dim and warm and clean as always. After a moment, Makoto remembered that Haru’s parents had been here the night before, fulfilling their whim to come back for end-of-summer Obon activities. He frowned. That explained why Haru was taking so long in the bath that morning.

He nudged aside the curtain to the laundry space and stopped in front of the bath door, trying to decide if he should just let Haru have time to himself today, when he caught a whiff of something he wasn’t used to in the familiarity of Haru’s home: salt. Not salt like someone would use for cooking, but the salt of the ocean. Maybe it was carried up on the breeze from the shore at the bottom of the hill, but when Makoto had climbed the stairs there had been no wind and the ocean smell was lighter. This scent was like salt from deeper water, only breathed in when on a boat, or maybe when swimming between islands. It sent a little shiver down Makoto’s spine.

He shook his head to clear it, chalking it up to his overactive imagination, and steeled himself. He needed to stop spacing out and get both of them to school on time. He reached out to slide open the door, when something else made him pause. Maybe his eyes were playing tricks now, because he swore he saw the wood _warp_. He stared, and watched as the door bowed and strained, groaning like something was pushing on it from the other side. The sound made him yelp and jump back. What _was_ this?

“Haru,” he said, his voice likely too small to be heard past the door, “it’s me. Is everything okay in there?” His question was answered with another creak from the door.

He took a few deep breaths and slowly reached out and curled his fingers in the door handle. It was another breath before he worked up the courage to finally pull. When he did, he received the biggest shock of his young life up to that point. He didn’t even have time to yell before a torrent of water as tall as the door came rushing out, engulfing him and flooding the laundry area before streaming into the hallway. The gush lasted only a few moments, but it felt like much longer. Once the slosh of water stopped, he stood there, coughing, as his bangs dripped into his eyes. This _had_ to be a dream. He must still be asleep in his bed at the bottom of the hill.

Makoto brushed his wet hair out of his face and spotted Haru in the middle of the tiled floor, rather than in the tub. He sat like he had hit the ground suddenly (and Makoto thought deliriously that he probably _had_ , when all that water drained away), legs splayed and arms braced behind him stiffly. He tossed his hair out of his face and glanced at Makoto with a doleful expression. Makoto almost jumped back again in shock. Haru’s skin was studded with shining blue scales that were beginning to flake off onto the tile.

“Makoto,” he said, “I became a god.”

It was then that Makoto fully understood the secret he’d been asked to keep. At the end of their last summer of high school, Haru’s extraordinariness finally came into full bloom.


	2. Overflow

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In my excitement to get the first chapter out, I forgot to thank the people who helped make this fic possible:
> 
> \- enflashings, for constantly bullying me and supporting my constant editing requests  
> \- My wife, for kicking my ass and telling me to just write what I love  
> \- dryswallow, for always being awesome and promoting my words
> 
> And, additionally:
> 
> \- You guys, for the comments, kudos and bookmarks. I'm so excited for all of them!
> 
> As always, enjoy!

Just as they’d suggested they would, Haru’s parents showed up at home at the end of that summer. He went with them to his grandmother’s grave, and together they cleaned the plot and brought fresh flowers and incense. He went shopping with his mother, and she greeted neighbors and former co-workers from the convenience store along the way. Makoto’s parents stopped by, and they caught up for a while, taking a great deal of joy in how hard Makoto was studying now that he knew what he wanted to do with his life. He helped his mother cook dinner, and the three of them ate at the table like it was something they always did.

Haru was patient, but this was one of those rare times when waiting felt like a slow crawl. The only way to pick up the pace was to answer a lot of questions about the swim club and listen as his parents told him how exciting the National meet had been from the spectators’ seats. Their words bolstered his determination to tell them about the future that had opened up to him. There was no better time than now, because who knew when he would get another chance. With encouragement from his teammates in mind, he waited for them to come to a natural pause before finally speaking up.

“I received a scouting offer from a university in Tokyo.” He paused, watching their faces. When they remained silent and staring, he pushed forward, like he’d learned how in the past few years: “They’ve trained up a few members of the national team in the past. I’m going to accept it.” He took another breath to go on, to tell them how high he was aiming, about wanting to swim in front of the whole world, but it caught in his throat and he swallowed it fretfully. They weren’t reacting at all, except for his mother’s eyes flicking furtively to the table top, and then sidelong at his father, before meeting Haru’s gaze again, her expression carefully schooled.

“Haruka,” she said, after another long moment, “it’s wonderful that you’ve been able to enjoy swimming up until now, and we’re especially glad that it’s awakened so much potential in you. We hope that you’ll be able to continue enjoying it in some small way, but there’s something much, much bigger you’re meant for now. The truth is, we came home specifically to tell you this.”

She spoke so strangely, her word choice formal, humble, and not at all the way she was speaking to him five minutes ago. There was nothing right about it. Haru felt like water was closing over his head as he sank. After everything he’d seen and felt, were they about to deny him something he was finally certain about?

His father picked up where his mother left off. “You aren’t like other people, Haruka. You have been gifted with a truly unique place in this world. Very few can say that they were born to be a god.”

It was like hearing them through water. He didn’t understand very well, but he feared opening his mouth to ask anything, because what if he _ drowned? _ It took him several moments to get his throat working, and when he finally did, his words came out an embarrassing croak: “You’re saying I’m a god?”

His mother made an aborted motion, as though reaching out to comfort him, but reconsidering it. Her hands folded in her lap instead. “We are all children of the gods, of course. But, you are special. You will  _ be _ a god, yourself.”

“Wait. This is impossible,” said Haru. His voice was flat to his own ears. “I’m just normal. I’ve never done anything like a god would.”

“That’s because you haven’t reached your full potential yet, but it will happen soon,” said his father. “It has awakened within you, and the divinations have said that at any time now, you will become what you were always meant to be. Everyone was wondering for a while if it might actually never happen — ”

_ Who is everyone? _

“ — but you are on course to being a true god now.”

“I don’t understand. Neither of you are gods, right? Why is it me? How do you know all this?” Only a fraction of the questions he had made it out of his mouth.

“It was seen through divination that the time for a new god of this area to be born was at hand. Your father and I were tasked with caring for you by the organization we work for, and the priest at the shrine here was waiting and preparing, as well.”

_ Tasked with caring for me? _ Haru’s insides ran cold at that. They both continued talking, still using the same strange, humble speech, but he didn’t hear any more of it. He had sunk too far, and their voices no longer reached him. This was a state he was used to, anyway. He always went so long without hearing from them. This was the usual. This was normal.

Just like he  _ wasn’t. _

His mother’s cell phone abruptly buzzed to life, and she stepped out of the room for a moment to take the call. Her return brought Haru back to the surface in time to hear his father speaking again.

“Oh, it seems we have to go back tonight to prepare more things for you. We’ll contact you with information about the school they want you to attend next year. You should turn the information over to your school counselor so they can help you with the arrangements that will need to be made. They’ll already understand what’s going on. We probably won’t see each other again for a while, but we are so very excited for what’s to come for you, Haruka. Or rather, I should call you — ”

_ No. Don’t! _

“ — Haruka _ -sama. _ ”

They departed with as little fanfare as they arrived. Haru spent the rest of the evening doing the dishes, cleaning off the table, folding his laundry, and brushing his teeth and washing up before bed. He did each step methodically, stubbornly, as though doing something normal would  _ anchor _ him in the normal. He was just another person. There wasn’t anything special about him. Forget being a god. Forget swimming in front of the world. Forget Nationals. Forget relays. Nothing special. He was just an ordinary person.

_ How much longer until I’m 20? _

None of this worked like he wanted it to. It all unraveled when he checked his phone before bed, and there were messages from all of his friends about a meeting after school tomorrow, or grudgingly saying he should come to Samezuka again soon (that one was, of course, Rin). He didn’t answer any of them, just laid there holding his phone and slowly drifted back to himself. He was Nanase Haruka. He was the vice-captain of the Iwatobi Swim Club (a title which held no actual meaning, according to Nagisa, but that title would become Nagisa’s to make of it what he would, soon). He was part of the best relay team, and they placed 6th in the nation at the National tournament. He had been scouted. He had stood on the starting block of a pool in another country with Rin at his side and he had  _ flown …  _

Though it was the end of summer, the nights were still humid. Haru slept fitfully, his phone tucked under his pillow. At some point, during a moment between wakefulness and dreams of waves and wings, it happened. Something stole over him, heavy as the night itself, and more brilliant than the light he imagined in his future. He shifted restlessly, though he couldn’t fully wake up. By the time he opened his eyes in the morning, he had relearned himself again, and yet understood himself less than ever.

He wondered if all gods felt this way, when they came to be.

 

~*~

 

The next day, the humidity didn’t let up. The only slight relief to be found from it was on the school roof. Gou sighed and picked at her lunch, already dreading the change to the winter uniform that always came far too early. On top of that, why were she and Rei the only ones here? They were all supposed to meet today to talk over some things about next year, but that was hard to do when most of the club was missing. She’d given up a nice quiet lunch with Hana for this.

“I’m certain Nagisa-kun will return from checking on Haruka-senpai and Makoto-senpai soon,” said Rei. And then, as though perfectly on cue, the doorway to the roof burst open and the hurricane known as Nagisa blew threw it, alone. 

Gou blinked in surprise, not so much at Nagisa’s entrance but at the fact that neither Haruka or Makoto were with him. “Huh? Are both of them absent today?”

Nagisa bent over double, gulping in air from his dash up the stairs, before straightening and waving his arms in another burst of exertion. “That’s not the important part! I just heard something really crazy about why they aren’t here!”

“Don’t tell me. It couldn’t be. Were they arrested because Haruka-senpai was swimming somewhere he shouldn’t have!?” said Rei, pressing his hands to his face dramatically.

“Why would he need to do that? The pool here is still open after all,” said Gou. She wasn’t sure Rei was entirely wrong to guess that, though.

“Even crazier than that!”

“ — no one is dead, right?”

“Even, even, even crazier!”

Gou couldn’t let this hang for a second longer. She got up and grabbed Nagisa by the shoulders, giving him a shake. “Nagisa-kun, say it! What did you hear?”

He planted his hands on her shoulders in return. “Everyone’s saying it! Everyone’s saying that Haru-chan became the local god last night!”

The ensuing shocked silence went on for long enough that it was filled by the cries of a bird. Gou let go of Nagisa in surprise.

“That’s impossible!” said Rei.

Nagisa let out a long breath, finally catching it, before answering, “Really?”

“Nagisa-kun, you know Haruka-senpai. He’s extraordinary in a lot of ways, but he isn’t a god. People don’t just become gods overnight. It takes a lifetime and enshrinement after one has passed. Unless you’re saying Haruka-senpai is — !”

“That’s not what I’m saying, Rei-chan! I said what everyone is saying. If it’s not true, then what does it mean?”

“No, wait, I  _ have _ heard about something like this,” said Gou, “from my Obaa-chan.” 

Her grandmother had been a pearl-diver, living along the coast for years and years. She knew everything about the area, and the ocean as well. When Gou and Rin were younger, her bedtime stories were always about the things she saw in the depths. After their father died, she stopped telling stories for a while, as though to punish the things that lived in the water by keeping them from the world. It wasn’t long, however, before she went back to murmuring about the sea.

One evening, when she was sitting at the table and gazing out over the waves through the open porch door, waiting for tea that Gou was learning to make from her mother, her grandmother leaned her head in her hand and sighed, “If only the local god was grown up.”

Gou didn’t understand what that meant, but it sounded like something from a story. Before she could ask her mother about it though, she was prompted to mind the hot water. In that instant, she forgot her question in favor of doing her best to make sure the tea wasn’t bitter. 

As Gou grew up, this “local god” was always mentioned like that: in passing, off-hand, so she never got around to asking what it meant, until recently. She was visiting after school one day, and her grandmother came up from the shore in a good mood.

“The ocean is calm today and the breeze is sharp. Word has it someone will wake up soon as a brand new god. And we’ve been without one for so long,” she said.

“It’s been awhile since you’ve told a story like that, Obaa-chan,” said Gou.

Her grandmother squeezed the top of Gou’s head, not hard, but enough to chastise. “It’s not a story. There’s a lot more to this world than you’ve seen. Not all gods are enshrined. Sometimes there’s even one right beside you.”

It wasn’t as though Gou didn’t believe the things her grandmother knew and saw. Certainly, she visited shrines to ask for success for the swim team, always properly tied up her fortunes, and did her best to respect the area around her, no matter where she was. But she didn’t swim, didn’t dive, and never saw anything like the subjects of her grandmother’s stories. In some ways, it was like they belonged to different worlds. But now, it was startlingly, obviously clear that the line between those worlds was much thinner than she imagined.

Nagisa hiccuped. “It’s true then? Gou-chan, what happens to people who become gods? Does that mean he’s gone away somewhere? No, I don’t want that. We can’t lose Haru-chan!”

“You’re getting ahead of the situation, Nagisa-kun,” said Rei, placing a hand on his shoulder to steady him.

“That’s right,” said Gou. “We aren’t going to let Haruka-senpai go away anywhere. Okay, as manager, I’m declaring an emergency meeting at Haruka-senpai’s place after school. We’ll get to the bottom of what all of this means.”

Rei nodded and, after a few sniffles, so did Nagisa. The situation, thankfully, had been reigned in for the moment.

The three second-years gathered up their things since lunch was almost over. As they headed back down the stairs, Gou continued to turn things over in her head. “Nagisa-kun, you’ve known Haruka-senpai a while. Did he never mention anything about this? About being a god?”

Nagisa shook his head emphatically and crossed his hands in a negative gesture. “Absolutely not at all. Not even once!”

“I wonder if Makoto-senpai knew,” said Rei. “The two of them seem to know everything about each other, don’t they?”

“If he knew, he never said anything either,” said Nagisa. “I wonder if it was supposed to be a secret.”

“Maybe — ” Gou paused, considering. She felt inside her bag for her phone and pulled it out, flipping it open. Rei and Nagisa leaned over her curiously as she fired off a quick message to the one other person who might have known something:

  * _Onii-chan, do you know anything about Haruka-senpai and a local god?_



“Do you really think Rin-san — ” Rei began, but Nagisa shushed him, as though if he spoke, a reply would never come through. 

The three of them stared at Gou’s phone, hoping that Rin was still lingering on the last few minutes of his lunch. Just when they thought they’d have to go back to class before they got an answer, Gou’s phone chimed. She gulped, and opened the message:

  * _What are you talking about?_



“Onii-chan, you’re so blunt,” she muttered, while the other two let out disappointed sighs. 

“It seems that we aren’t the only ones in the dark, then,” said Rei, with a push to his glasses. “I suppose the news hasn’t traveled that far yet?”

“Like I said, we’ll get to the bottom of this as soon as class is over,” said Gou. “For now, everyone back to your classrooms!”

They barely made it back in time. Gou regretted making them wait for answers though, because she couldn’t concentrate on the lesson at all. She hoped Haruka was all right …

 

~*~

 

The moment class ended for the day, the three second-years scrambled to get their outdoor shoes back on and dashed out of the school. Nagisa took a breath to yell for Rei to slow down and wait for them, but before he could, a familiar pink car pulled up along side them. The driver reached across and opened the opposite door.

“Ama-chan!” said Nagisa, catching her drift right away. He bounded over to the car.

“Everyone, get in! I’ll take you over to Nanase-kun’s house. It’ll be faster than waiting for the train, or walking!”

Nagisa was already crawling into the backseat, and Rei slid in beside him. “Ah, we’re really grateful, thank you so much,” he said.

“It’s nothing,” said Amakata, smiling at Gou as she hopped into the front next to her. “I’m worried about him too. He’s my student, after all. The school asked me to go speak with him today, but to be honest,” she paused and fidgeted with her fingers a bit, “I didn’t want to speak to him just because the school asked me to in an official capacity. If I were in his shoes right now, that would be the last thing I’d want. What I would want right now the most is to be with my friends. Right?”

“Ama-chan! Thank you!” said Nagisa as he latched onto the back of her seat like a cicada. Sure, he gave her a hard time, but when push came to shove, she was always looking out for them. There wasn’t a teacher in his life he adored more.

“Now, now, everyone buckle your seat belts properly. We’re off!” 

She turned the car toward the coast. There wasn’t anything Nagisa could do to quell the restless feelings welling up in his chest while he sat and waited as they drove. He even jumped when Rei put his hand on one of his own to comfort him. In response, Nagisa turned and buried his face in Rei’s shoulder. Neither of them said a word.

Finally, Amakata pulled off along the road near Haru’s house to let them out. “I’ll give him some space for now. I can always speak with him at school tomorrow. I know seeing all of you will show him that things haven’t changed. Off you go, everyone!” They all said “thank you!” and waved as she drove away. 

The three of them made their way through the neighborhood and up to the top of the staircase. When they got to the entryway of Haru’s house, Nagisa couldn’t contain himself. He pressed the doorbell, and when there was no immediate response, he pressed it again. And again. And again. Finally Rei reached out and grabbed his arm to stop him. Nagisa let out a little “nnnaaah” of protest.

“He’s not home?” said Gou, gazing up at the house forlornly.

“They took him away, didn’t they? They wanted to do experiments on a god so they came and took him away in the night! It’s all over!” said Nagisa. He crouched down and covered his head with his arms, curling into a ball of distress.

“Who even is ‘they?’ ” said Gou.

“Listen, the back door is usually unlocked, right? Makoto-senpai showed us. Let’s hurry!” said Rei.

“You’re right, let’s go!” said Nagisa, springing back to his feet.

They dashed around to the backyard and Rei slid open the back door. Inside, it was dark and quiet. Haru was definitely not there.

“There’s still one last place we can go. We have to see if they’re at Mako-chan’s, right? Right?” said Nagisa. He couldn’t keep calm because, with every passing moment, the concern on Rei and Gou’s faces was deepening. 

They made their way back down the stairs a little slower than they’d gone up them, each of their accumulating doubts stalling their pace. By the time they reached Mako’s front door, they were almost reluctant to see if anyone was there. Nagisa hung back, leaning into Rei’s supportive presence, as Gou squared her shoulders and knocked. After a long moment, Mako’s mother finally opened the door.

“Oh, the swim club! Hello, everyone. Are you here to see Makoto and Haru-kun?”

A wave of relief washed over the three of them, and they relaxed and smiled. “They’re here?” said Nagisa.

“They are. Please, come in! I’m sure they’ll be happy to see you.”

There was a stampede of little feet on the landing and then Mako’s siblings popped out from behind their mother. “Mama, who’s here?” said Ran.

“Ah! It’s Big Brother Butterfly!” said Ren, launching himself at Rei’s hip. Rei laughed, and Nagisa felt all the built-up tension drain away.

“Still as popular as ever, right, Rei-chan? Maybe we should call you Rei-papa instead?” he said. It was definitely the right thing to say, because Rei immediately turned the best colors and made the funniest noise. Even Ren and Ran laughed.

The ruckus must have given them away, because Mako appeared in the entryway as well. “Everyone! You all came!”

“They did. You should show them up to your room. I’ll bring tea in a few minutes, okay?” said his mother. She started toward the kitchen, but turned back to them after a step. “I’m so grateful you came. Thank you, really.”

Mako was chagrined as they followed him up to his room. “Sorry. I should have contacted you all but, well, it’s been an eventful day. Since you’re here though, does that mean everyone at school knows?”

Nagisa nodded. “Everyone at school is talking about it. But, Mako-chan, we were wondering if you knew?”

Mako paused there in the hallway, eyes searching the ceiling thoughtfully. “Well, I always knew there was something that set him apart. But, I never understood that it was something so huge.”

“He’s really become a god, then?” said Gou.

Mako leaned in more conspiratorially. “Without a doubt. When I went to get him to walk to school this morning, he had somehow filled the bathroom with sea water. It was all the way up to the ceiling. It flooded the hallway when I opened the door! We came back here to clean up and change clothes.” He grinned, his eyebrows turning up sheepishly.

“Flooded the hallway?” said Gou. The question was tinged with enough skepticism that it made Rei jump when it sank in.

“But we were just there!” he said, “There weren’t any signs of flooding at all!”

“Ah, that,” said Mako. “I guess he was able to send the water away as easily as he brought it. Or something like that. I didn’t really understand what happened. I was too surprised.”

“Mako-chan, is Haru-chan all right?” said Nagisa. He didn’t ask what he really wanted to know, though he was sure they were all feeling the same way: _ Is Haru-chan still Haru-chan? _

Mako’s eyebrows turned up again. “I think he’ll feel better when he sees everyone here.” 

He opened the door to his room and there was Haru, his knees tucked up to his chin in a ball on Mako’s bed, with a game controller clutched in his hands. He didn’t look like a god at all. It took him a moment to look up from the game, but when he did, his expression was pure uncertainty. “Everyone?”

Nagisa’s heart clenched. He choked back a sobbing breath and slipped on the floor a little as he made his way over to where Haru was curled up. He crawled onto the bed next to him and grabbed him in a tight hug, sniffing loudly. “Haru-chan!”

“Hey, Nagisa, that’s — !” Haru said, trying to protest, but it was weak. He didn’t actually try to push him away, so Nagisa nuzzled against Haru’s shoulder. He was so glad, so glad! This was definitely still Haru.

Rei stepped in after, smiling gently. “We were so worried about you, Haruka-sen — er — _ sa — _ ”

Nagisa felt Haru tense before he shouted. “Rei!”

Everyone in the room was stunned into silence. Rei’s mouth worked uselessly a few times before he finally choked out: “S-sorry. Perhaps I’ll go see if your mother needs help with the tea, Makoto-senpai. I’ll return shortly.” He was out the door before anyone could say anything else.

Nagisa was torn. He wanted to stay with Haru, but at the same time, he knew that all of them needed to be a united front right now. He gave Haru another hug and bounded off the bed. “I’m gonna help too! Be right back, Haru-chan! Don’t go anywhere now!”

He found Rei in the hallway leaning against the wall, his face buried in one hand. He didn’t look up when Nagisa padded over, but it was clear he knew who came after him. “I was only thinking that it would be more respectful to call him that now, but I’ve actually made a horrible mistake, haven’t I?”

“Rei-chan, you still over-think everything,” said Nagisa.

“It seems so,” said Rei with a doleful laugh.

“You have to come back, though. We’re here to show Haru-chan that nothing has changed for us, right?” Nagisa gripped Rei’s sleeve. “I think he’s really scared. Come back and show him you don’t feel any differently. Okay?”

Rei took a shaky breath and smiled fondly. “Very well. I’ll definitely address him as always this time.”

Just as Nagisa grabbed Rei’s arm to drag him back in, Mako’s father reached the top of the stairs. “I was asked to hand this off to you boys. Take your time.”

“Ah, thank you very much.” Rei took the tray and nodded to Nagisa, and together they returned to the room.

“Everyone, we’re back!” said Nagisa. “There’s tea!”

“Oh, thanks guys,” said Mako. His gaze shifted over to Haru, who immediately turned away, trying to find somewhere else to look.

Nagisa gave Rei a helpful nudge. He approached Haru confidently and held the tray out. “Haruka-senpai, would you like some?”

Haru slowly looked up at Rei, his expression for a moment making him look much, much younger. “Thanks.” It wasn’t clear if he was thanking him for the tea or for not calling him “Haruka-sama,” but the tension in the room finally eased.

Gou made herself comfortable with her tea on the floor next to the bed. “Did you know anything about this, Haruka-senpai?” she said, trying to get things back on track.

“No. My parents were here over the weekend. They told me before they left yesterday.”

“Your parents knew?” said Nagisa, his eyes widening in surprise. He didn’t know much about Haru’s parents, since Haru lived alone, but he wasn’t expecting that.

Haru nodded listlessly against his knees. “They told me the work they do in the city is for an organization that oversees things like this. I never really understood.” The tone of voice suggested that he hadn’t really cared, either. “They told me they were tasked with raising me.”

Both Nagisa and Gou recoiled at that wording, and Nagisa saw something cross Mako’s face that he’d never seen there before. For Mako, it was a bit out of place, but the only words that came to mind to describe such an expression was vague contempt.

“What a horrible thing for them to say,” said Gou.

Haru only shrugged.

The atmosphere in the room grew palpably heavy again. Nagisa couldn’t stand it, so he shoved aside any other questions he had about Haru having to go away anywhere. They needed to turn this around now. It was their job to cheer Haru up!

“Hey hey,” said Nagisa, “Mako-chan told us you filled your bath like the ocean. How? How did you do it, Haru-chan?”

Haru lifted his head. “I don’t know. I ducked down in the water in the bath and suddenly I was floating there. It made me feel better. It was a relief.”

“Do it again!” said Nagisa. “Now that you’re a god, you can do whatever you want! I want to see all the sorts of things that Haru-chan can do!”

“Wait, please don’t flood my room!” said Mako, his voice rising with every syllable.

“Especially when some of us don’t swim,” said Gou.

“That’s not the point!” Mako shot back.

“You’re all so stingy,” said Nagisa. “Haru-chan should be able to have fun with this now. Don’t you think so?”

“It  _ would _ be beneficial to figure out just how such processes work,” said Rei. 

Rei thought he was helping, and Nagisa knew that. But, now was not the time for logical reasoning. “Rei-chan, you sound like the people who want to take him away to study him.” 

“Who are you even talking about when you say that!?” said Rei.

“You know, the scientists who drive up in black cars to steal away people in the night. They whisk them off to hidden laboratories,” and here, Nagisa demonstrated a speeding car with his hand, “and then they tie them down to tables with all sorts of sinister instruments and — !”

Gou cut him off. “That definitely won’t happen.”

“Ah, right, that’s right, Haru, I’m sure everything will be fine,” said Mako, hands held out placatingly.

“Fine, fine,” said Nagisa. “Putting that aside, you want to try and see what you can do, right, Haru-chan?”

Haru was starting to look a little overwhelmed, but it was more in the usual way and less in the frightened way. “Like I said, I don’t really know what I did.”

“Hmm … Maybe you need a special phrase? Like a magical spell? Or pose? Like those guys!” Nagisa pointed at the figures from an old sentai show on Mako’s desk.

“Perhaps we should determine what kind of a god he is first,” said Rei.

“Isn’t that obvious though, Rei-kun?” said Gou. “He flooded his bath. And when it comes to swimming, he won’t lose to anyone! Except maybe my brother,” she added, as a sheepish afterthought. “Wouldn’t that make him — ?”

“A water god!” said Mako, Rei and Nagisa, all at once.

“Haru-chan: Iwatobi’s unbeatable water god! Doesn’t that sound amazing?” said Nagisa.

Haru was clutching his teacup, but his eyes were shining in a particular way that was usually only reserved for pools. The swim club members glanced at each other and smiled. Even though all of this was totally unexpected, it somehow suited Haru. Everything was going to be fine.

Haru was quiet as he turned things over his head, and he blew idly on his tea to cool it. And that’s when it happened. The teacup made a gurgling noise and abruptly overflowed. Tea dribbled to the floor in a steadily growing stream. Haru stared at the cup in fascination.

Mako stared for a moment too, but quickly came to his senses when he remembered the concerns he had expressed earlier. “Ah, Haru, you really can’t flood my room!”

“Wow! That’s amazing Haru-chan! Look at it go!” said Nagisa. 

“I didn’t do anything,” said Haru, holding the teacup away from him like that would somehow stop it. The tea flowed over his hand and started to form a puddle on the floor.

Rei leaned in for a closer look, adjusting his glasses as he did so. “It’s definitely ordinary tea, it’s simply creating itself at an incredible rate.”

“Amazing!” said Gou.

While everyone was distracted by the overflowing tea, Nagisa noticed something else. Fine blue scales began to push their way out of the skin on Haru’s face, like pale buds sprouting to the surface in spring. Nagisa gasped and reached out to prod at them. “Haru-chan, your face! Do they hurt? Are you okay?”

“Those again!” said Mako.

Haru spared a hand to feel where Nagisa was poking, jerking in surprise when he felt them. More tea sloshed on the floor. “They don’t hurt, but — ”

“Haru, the tea, please make it stop!” Mako fussed. 

Haru just continued to stare at the teacup. The absurdity of the situation really tickled Nagisa and he couldn’t help it. He started laughing. A lot. “Maybe … maybe if you shout ‘Oh tea, stop!’ really loudly, it’ll listen!” he said, between guffaws.

Haru brought the tea back closer. He didn’t shout, but he did say “stop.” It refused. In fact, it gurgled again. The puddle on the floor was only getting bigger. Haru’s face scrunched together in a glare, and Nagisa only laughed harder. Haru abruptly stood, jostling Nagisa, as the rest of the club members shouted what they believed would be helpful advice. Haru heeded none of it. Instead, he reached over and opened the window. Without any ceremony, he tossed the teacup out. Everyone exclaimed and scrambled over to watch.

Tea streamed out of the cup all the way to the ground, where it hit without breaking. It rolled onto its side and tea continued to trickle out, like a hose someone had left on. Mako sighed in relief.

“Sorry about the teacup,” said Haru.

“It-it could have been worse,” said Mako. He turned back to the sizable tea puddle on the floor and groaned.

“Don’t mind it, Mako-chan! We’ll help you clean up,” said Nagisa.

They all moved to do so, discussing where the towels were kept, when Haru crouched by the puddle thoughtfully. He slid his fingers into the mess, palm splayed. His eyes slid closed and he took a breath. Nagisa blinked. In the space of that blink, the tea was sucked away, like it was never there. When Haru released that breath, the scales that had formed on his face came loose, scattering on the floor. 

“Haru-chan!” said Nagisa.

Everyone turned back to look. Mako’s face lit up happily. “Haru, you did it!”

“I still don’t know what I did,” said Haru, turning away. A moment later, he was dog-piled by everyone in a joyous group-hug.

The mess had been dutifully cleaned up, and everyone settled down again. Nagisa watched as Haru relaxed more and more and became more certain in his skin again. By the time Mako’s mother came upstairs to remind them they still had school tomorrow that they needed to rest up for, Nagisa hoped Haru understood that they didn’t look at him any differently. He was still their incredible Haru and they still loved him very, very much. Tomorrow would be another day, with all of them together.

Things were going to be even more fun from here on!  



	3. Sight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I meant to post this back in May, but then life interfered. I'm sorry that it's so short for the amount of time I've been working on it. I'm pretty sure the next part will be longer, since it's got a lot happening in it. Anyway, Samezukas are on the loose in this chapter, which is always an exciting thing. 
> 
> Enjoy!

Didn’t it just figure that the stupidest unsurprising thing Sousuke had ever heard was about Nanase Haruka? That was the thought, sparked by rumors spreading through town, that he kept coming back to on the train ride to Samezuka. Nanase becoming a god—of all things—was at the same time completely ridiculous _and_ a sound theory that explained the numerous question marks drifting over his existence.

Sousuke got that people were drawn to something in Nanase, especially because even _he_ wasn’t unmoved by whatever it was. He thought maybe it was just some sort of weird animal magnetism, because Nanase’s lack of initiative made him distinctly unimpressive otherwise, at least to Sousuke. And yet, he couldn’t leave him well enough alone. No one could. And now, _this._

He let his head fall back against the train window and sighed. Did Rin know already? Well, even if he didn’t know consciously, he was sure Rin had an idea _un_ consciously, since he was the most ensnared by Nanase. He’d deflect, deny, dodge it if you pointed it out to him, but Sousuke wasn’t stupid. He knew.

If Rin hadn’t heard by now, their room sure was going to be lively that night. Sousuke doubted Rin would be able to handle the ridiculousness of this new revelation either, and Rin not-handling something generally had a pretty good chance of involving a lot of noise.

But, when Sousuke got back to their shared dorm room, the lights were still off. Waiting around for Rin to come back didn’t have nearly as much appeal as getting to see his reaction sooner, so Sousuke shut the door and headed out again. After a wrong turn (since he rarely went there alone), he made his way over to the gym. He found Rin putting weights back on the racks.

“Hey, how’d it go?” Rin asked, his tone breezy in an attempt at appearing as casual as possible. He always asked that when Sousuke came back from town, because he knew where he’d been.

The appointment had gone as well as to be expected, so Sousuke shrugged in response. “The usual.” The look Rin gave Sousuke for this routine answer was completely unimpressed, but not severe enough to keep Sousuke on-topic. Rin was too calm—he definitely didn’t know. “Anyway, I heard something completely insane in town.”

“Oh yeah? About what?”

“Nanase, actually.”

Rin tossed the last weight onto the rack with a loud _clank!_ “Hah? What’s with him? Did he finally get arrested for swimming somewhere he shouldn’t?”

“You really don’t know, do you,” said Sousuke. He was clearly smiling too much, because Rin was starting to get riled up.

“What, come on, spit it out!” He kicked at Sousuke’s calf.

Sousuke hopped back a step and laughed. He wasn’t ready to surrender yet. “I heard at the clinic that someone from the guild was saying there’s a new local god. They’re expecting bigger hauls now.”

“So they’re amping up the superstition? What brought that on? Oi, don’t change the subject. What happened with Haru?”

“Like I said,” said Sousuke, casting a sidelong glance at Rin, waiting for it to sink in, “there’s a new local god.”

“Hah?” Rin squinted at Sousuke. “Unbelievable. You’re making a really weird joke, you know.”

Sousuke spread his hands. “It’s not me. It’s the guild. I’m just the messenger.”

Rin stared, and it was more interesting than it probably should have been to watch the kaleidoscope of emotions that spread over his face. Ultimately, he settled on incredulous. He barked “unbelievable!” again before dropping to his knees and dragging his gym bag over. He fished out his phone, flipped it open, and pulled up a number furiously. Even though Sousuke hadn’t said a word during all of this, Rin put out a hand to demand quiet. Sousuke grinned again.

“ ‘Baa-chan, it’s me,” Rin said into the receiver, and then there was a long pause as he let his grandmother speak first. After a few moments, he continued: “Sousuke said the guild was saying that. You knew too?” Another pause, and then: “Yeah, that’s why I called you. What? Yeah? Yeah, the one from the relay. Yeah … the one I took to Australia. Yeah … ” There was another pause, and suddenly all the color drained out of Rin’s face. “What? You want me to bring him by? What? ‘Baa-chan, I can’t just—! ‘Baa-chan! But!” During this pause, he sat up straighter. “Yes. Yes. I will. I know, it is. Yes. I’ll see you soon. Good evening.” He shut the phone, let it drop to the mat and looked up at Sousuke, his expression now world-weary.

“Still want to kill the messenger?” said Sousuke.

“Unbelievable,” said Rin.

 

~*~

 

He couldn’t relax. Sousuke had long since turned out the light on his half of the room and climbed up into his bunk. Rin sprawled out on his own bed, hoping for sleep, but the familiar, lingering pressure of oncoming insomnia made his limbs tense. It was definitely going to be one of those nights.

He quietly changed into his running clothes and crept out of the dorm. At first, his sole intention was truly just to go for a run to wear himself out. But, the longer and further he went, the more anxious he became. His gaze slipped through the familiar landscape around him into his mind’s eye, where he pictured cool, clear eyes—the depths of which he never completely understood—turning away from him and toward something beyond him.

He ran harder. He couldn’t believe it. He wouldn’t believe it. He _refused_ to believe that Haru was getting further away from him.

It was late, but there was still one last train. He was only a few minutes from the station. He could make it. It was insane, since it was a one-way trip until morning, but he knew he wouldn’t be sleeping anyway. He needed to see Haru. Maybe he wasn’t sleeping either.

_Yeah, right,_ Rin thought. _Why wouldn’t he be sleeping?_

He got on the train anyway.

It wasn’t a long ride and when he got off, he continued jogging like he’d never stopped. He made his way to the beach and kicked up sand as he ran until he recognized the neighborhood from the shore. He ducked between houses and passed Makoto’s home on the staircase. Most of the lights were off except one bedroom window that was still gently glowing. Rin grinned. Maybe Makoto was studying hard.

He bounded up the staircase, and stopped under the torii gate to catch his breath and wipe his face with the towel he’d brought with him. He didn’t want to be a sweaty, panting mess when Haru answered the door. Never mind how late it was and that he wasn’t expected and that Haru might even already be in bed. After a moment of staring idly at the torii gate, he nodded his resolve to the structure and tucked his towel away. He strolled up to the door and rang the bell.

To his surprise, the door actually opened in a timely manner, and Haru was still in his daytime clothes—in fact, he was in an apron. And clearly as surprised to see Rin as Rin was that Haru was still awake. His eyes widened and his hand gripped the door frame. “Rin …”

Rin puffed up, and grinned uncontrollably before he had a chance to settle on how cool to play things. “Yo, Haru. I’m surprised you’re still up.”

Haru eyed him from toe to face and the surprise in his expression scrunched up. “Did you run all the way here?”

“No!” snapped Rin, “I took the train over.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s warm tonight, and I wanted to jog on the beach. I thought I’d stop by.”

“Why?” said Haru.

“Do I need a reason? What about you, anyway? What’s with that apron? Cooking mackerel this late?”

Haru shrugged. “Midnight snack. I’m hungry.” He stood back from the door and they stared at each other for a moment before he spoke again. “Are you coming in?”

“Yeah.” Rin came in and crouched down to untie his running shoes, wiggling them off and leaving them in the entryway, and padded after Haru into the living area.

The porch door was open, letting in the warmth of the night and the smell of plants in the garden that were still holding on to the remains of the day’s sunlight. Rin settled at the low table and gazed into the shadows for a few moments. A neighborhood cat trotted by.

Haru silently poured a glass of barley tea from his small fridge and set it on the table for Rin before going back to his fish, scooping it deftly onto a plate when he deemed it done. “Did you want some?”

“Nah. I might dream about fish if I do,” said Rin. He took a gulp of tea to cover up the fact that, buried in that comment, was the implication that he would in fact be sleeping at some point tonight, and that it would have to be here, at Haru’s, because Rin was an _idiot_ and took the last train there.

Hopefully Makoto was still up. Rin needed a backup plan in case Haru threw him out on the street.

“And what’s wrong with dreaming about fish,” said Haru, his voice raising antagonistically as he dug through his fridge.

“Well, not everyone’s a weirdo about them like you are,” muttered Rin.

A dish was placed in the middle of the table with a petulant _clack!_ Neatly arranged on it was a pile of julienned vegetables that quickly filled the room with a sharp scent. Rin sniffed, and the telltale burn of spice filled his nose. “What’s that?”

“Spicy pickled cucumber,” said Haru. “You like spicy things, right? It’s this or mackerel. I thought they’d be good since the weather’s still warm.”

Rin stared at Haru and his eyes widened. _Haru made these for me?_ “Sure, thanks.” He picked up a piece—brilliant green dotted with crimson pepper flakes—and took a bite. It had just enough crunch left in it, and it was salty and tart, chased by heat. “It’s good!”

Haru shrugged again. “It was just a recipe I was trying.” He tucked into his midnight grilled fish snack. “Once I’m done eating, I’ll go draw the bath for you.”

Rin jumped, almost dropping one of the pickles. “Hah? You don’t have to do that. I’m just stopping by, anyway.”

“You took the last train, didn’t you? Are you going to run all the way back?”

“Maybe I will!” said Rin. “It’s not like I’m going to sleep tonight anyway!”

Haru gazed at him. “Why?”

Rin didn’t know how to answer that, honestly. He shrugged and muttered, “Just happens, sometimes.”

Movement in the yard caught their attention. Another cat joined the one already lurking out there and they played roughly, batting at each other, freezing, starting over again. Haru kept his eyes on the cats, but his words were for Rin, softer than anything he’d said that night: “Rin. Just stay.”

Something in the way Haru said it made it hard for Rin to swallow, and his voice half-cracked when he answered. “Sure.”

“In that case, let me draw the bath. Unless you want to go to bed sweaty.”

Rin choked on his barley tea.

The bath was drawn and Haru left some of his own night clothes for Rin to wear. Rin still couldn’t relax. Now he couldn’t stop thinking about sleeping in the same room—the same _bed_ as Haru. Everything he’d felt that night in Australia came rushing back, and tenderness mixed with his persistent agitation. He _had_ to calm down. By the time he was drying his hair, he was irritated with his heart rate.

Outside the bathroom, Haru had already cleaned up the dishes from their midnight snack, shut the porch door, and turned out most of the lights. Rin swallowed dryly and made his way upstairs to Haru’s room. Why was he so nervous? There was no reason for it. Nothing was different. Everything was fine.

He found Haru in his bedroom setting a guest futon on the floor, and the tiny prickle of disappointment at the sight of the bedding annoyed Rin almost as much as his pulse. Haru caught Rin looking, but his expression betrayed none of his own thoughts, as usual.

“You can lay it out yourself,” he said, “or you could just sleep in my bed. Whatever you want.”

Again, Rin ran his mouth. “You say something like that every time. What’s wrong, get lonely sleeping by yourself? You could just ask, you know.” If Haru didn’t throw Rin out, maybe he should just throw _himself_ out.

But Haru didn’t make any move to throw him out. “Don’t see it as a big deal. You decide.”

“Oi, Haru!”

“I’m turning out the lights.”

“Don’t turn out the lights before I roll out the futon!” Rin did so grudgingly and flopped down on it, a ball of nerves. Why did Haru always do and say things like that? It was almost like he was doing it on purpose. But there was no way. Haru was just that weird. That’s all it was. He’d always been like that.

Haru clicked off the light and shuffled around Rin, crawling into his bed and settling on top of the covers. For a while, the room was quiet except for their breathing. Then, Haru spoke again. “Rin.”

“What.”

“Are you going to run early tomorrow before you go back? Even though you ran all night?”

“I didn’t!” said Rin, “But, yeah. I’ll probably run to the train station.”

“I’ll go with you,” said Haru.

“And still have enough time to get ready for school?” said Rin.

There was another long pause before Haru finally answered: “Yeah.”

Rin smiled and settled down more. He slowly relaxed at the happy thought of getting to go for a run with Haru in the morning. Maybe he _would_ actually get to sleep tonight.

“Rin,” said Haru, his voice drifting out of the darkness again.

“What now?” said Rin, his tone more fond than annoyed.

Haru went quiet again before murmuring, “Thanks for coming, and staying. Good night.”

Rin flushed in surprise, but he cleared his throat quietly so it wouldn’t show in his voice. “Yeah, good night.”

Rin uncurled and rolled onto his back, staring at the dark ceiling thoughtfully. Why would Haru need to thank him for something like that? He’d only barged in because of his insomnia. _He_ was the one who needed to see Haru—

—he fought back the reflex to sit up and look at Haru when he suddenly remembered why he had gone there in the first place. He already knew Haru didn’t _look_ any different. His cool eyes were the same. He hadn’t done anything differently than the way he usually did things. He was still eating mackerel and drawing baths and the neighborhood cats were still hanging around him. No matter what Sousuke or his grandmother said, Haru was still very much Haru. He was right here, right next to Rin, drifting off to sleep. He wasn’t any further away. Rin’s heart thudded against his ribs.

It took a little longer after that, but Rin did finally drift off to the sound of Haru’s breathing.

 

~*~

 

The next morning, the sun came up even more sweltering than the day before. It was far too warm for the beginning of fall, and the last thing Haru wanted to do was move. Was there anything he could do about it? What good would being a god be if he couldn’t even control the weather? But who could he ask? Maybe Nagisa would know.

Rin shifting around in the room brought him fully awake and he sat up, catching sight of Rin pulling the t-shirt Haru had lent him over his head so he could put his running top back on. The room suddenly felt hotter and Haru used wiping his sweat-damp bangs off his forehead as an excuse to look away.

“Oh, great timing, you’re up,” said Rin. “What about breakfast?”

Haru huffed out a sigh. Rin was such a demanding guest. “Is mackerel acceptable now?”

“You’re crazy,” said Rin. “How much fish do you buy in a week anyway?”

“There was a sale. Besides,” said Haru as he slid his legs over the side and got out of his bed, “I won’t be in charge of my diet for much longer. Right?”

It was worth saying that for the excitement that lit up Rin’s face. He chuckled, unaware of how the warmth of that sound swept like a wave through Haru’s chest. “It’s true that most trainers aren’t going to let you live solely on mackerel.”

“Well then, I’m going to eat it now. As much as I can. I’ll regret it if I don’t.”

“All right, fine. It’s been a while since I’ve had your mackerel anyway.”

The rice cooker was set up to run the night before, so Haru had breakfast on the table in no time. While Rin finished eating, Haru changed into his club uniform. After checking to make sure nothing was left behind, the two of them were off for their morning jog.

Instead of heading back down to the beach, Rin took to the roadways. It didn’t take Haru long to recognize the way to their old swim club (which was now new again). He grinned a little and was happy to go along with it.

Before long they reached the Mutsuki Bridge, which spanned the river that Haru had fallen into once. Rin was slightly ahead as they set off across it. Haru was focused on Rin’s back, so he almost missed something that only caught his eye because it glinted dazzlingly gold in the morning sun. The Shiwa River was sluggish to begin with, so it was hard to make out things that were submerged without currents to trace them, but he could swear that something long with a pointed head was drifting just below the surface in the middle of the water. A snout poked up, and then two green, slitted eyes opened and glowed with intelligence. Haru came to an abrupt halt and he gripped the edge of the bridge as he leaned over, trying to get a better look. The green eyes blinked back. Golden whiskers on the end of the snout drifted lazily in the water.

“Oi, Haru, what are you looking at?” said Rin, trotting back over to his side when he realized Haru had stopped.

“Oh. Well. Look,” said Haru, nodding out at the current. He didn’t want to look away. What if it disappeared?

“What? What about the river?” said Rin. He leaned over to look too, but only clicked his tongue in annoyance after a moment. “What did you see, anyway?”

The green eyes closed and the scaly head sank back beneath the water. Haru almost called out, but it was already gone.

“Rin, you couldn’t see it?”

“Like I said, it must have been too fast for me. What was it?”

“—Nothing,” said Haru.

Rin huffed impatiently. “Damn, we gotta pick up the pace. I’m gonna be late, and you still gotta get back to change. Come on, let’s go.” He set off again.

Haru lingered over the railing for another moment before falling back into their pace.

The dragon (because it could be nothing but) wasn’t the only new feature of their jogging route. Iwatobi was even more alive than usual. Haru almost didn’t see the god of the bridge, since its skin was gray and studded with rock like the cement the bridge was made of, but it waved a skinny, metallic arm in greeting as they stepped off it and went on their way. Ocean air spirits—fat and fragile as glass windchimes, or goldfish—bobbed joyfully between sea and sky on flowing fins. When they reached the train station, Haru spotted a squat spirit with a head shaped like the front of the train, standing above the entrance with arms crossed sternly as it surveyed all who came near.

Rin saw none of these things. He bid Haru goodbye as he stepped through the sliding glass door to go catch his train (but not without asking for a race soon), leaving Haru alone, and yet less alone than he’d ever been in his life.


End file.
